How to Stay on the Offensive in Your Career and Life

Are you living your story or someone else’s?
That’s an uncomfortable question, but sit with it for a minute.

Losing yourself in someone else’s story or idea of success happens all too easily if you haven’t defined these things for yourself and committed to them. You get swept along by outside events and others’ agendas.

If that’s how you’re feeling, here are a few ways to get back in the driver’s seat:

Get clear, and stay clear, about what you want. Find a vision that gets you excited, a vision so compelling that you’ll claim space for it even in the face of distractions and competing demands for your time.

Engage in all directions. Your bosses, your colleagues, your reports – you need all of them. Relationships make things happen (and make you happier). Neglecting them will block you at every turn.

Connect with younger and older people. They’ll have different perspectives that you need.

Know your industry and general business trends. Whose field isn’t going through big changes? You can use these shifts to your advantage or get derailed by them.

Stay in tune with what you actually care about. Fulfillment is your fuel.

Stay connected to your motivation. If you ever catch yourself thinking “now why am I doing this?” that’s a good sign you’re not getting the best out of your brain. You’ll power through “blah” tasks like answering your email if you see their connection to achieving your vision.

Tap into your network. You’re not alone out there. Right now, you know people who want to help you.

Be kind. Give back. It’s the right thing to do, and seeing all the ways you can make a difference is incredibly energizing.